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By The Bakersfield Californian

Tuesday, Mar 10 2015 09:30 PM

The Republican Congressional leadership put itself in a potentially unflattering position this week when it appeared that no one at the top would be attending events marking the 50th anniversary of the "Bloody Sunday" march in Selma, Alabama.

Fortunately, at least one member of the Congressional leadership team decided at the last minute to attend: Kevin McCarthy, the House Majority Leader. He made the right choice, preventing what could have been a public relations gaffe of memorable proportion.

To his credit, McCarthy has participated in other Selma-related events, including film screenings. But the absence of House Speaker John Boehner, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and others in the GOP leadership speaks to some of the...

The Kern County Board of Supervisors faces some of its steepest economic challenges in years thanks to massive fluctuations in the price of oil. The Board must deal with a financially troubled hospital, expensive improvements to county...

Father Junipero Serra's role in California's development has long occupied an important place in the state's collective consciousness.
Starting in the fourth grade, California students are introduced to the famed Franciscan missionary,...

Americans in many pockets of the United States, especially this one, harbor deep distrust of President Obama and, in particular, his perceived economic priorities. But he wasn’t sounding any false alarms in Tuesday’s State of the Union...

Bryan Oliver brought a gun to school. He aimed it at another student. He fired. A fellow student was wounded before the young shooter could be wrestled to the ground by a teacher.
Those are the facts.
However, clear as the facts may be,...

California's controversial high-speed rail project has officially broken ground, and contracts have been awarded. But we're still no closer to solving the state's pervasive and growing transportation issues.
Critics have long enjoyed...

It's been a challenging week for House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy of Bakersfield. Rep. Steve Scalise, the man who took McCarthy's job as majority whip, we learned recently, inexplicably once spoke to a group founded by the neo-Nazi...

Kern County Supervisors are right to be uneasy about spending the money to upgrade the Lerdo jail, but it's clear the work needs to be done.
Under the fog of potential lawsuits from inmates with disabilities or special needs, supervisors...

Like rain, good news can come in buckets, and we saw plenty of that on Monday with uplifting moments and a good hire. For the Bakersfield and Kern County motor sports community, a tight-knit bunch already, the rise of Kevin Harvick, already...

Back in June, we endorsed Jon Lifquist for Kern County Assessor-Recorder. Now we're scratching our heads. We still like Lifquist's experience in the assessor's office and the continuity that his promotion would provide Kern County...

Few people probably give much thought to the position of California Secretary of State. Perhaps more people ought to: If they wish to vote or do business in California, the character and abilities of this elected official are vitally...

Democratic and Republican legislators should heed 14th District Sen. Andy Vidak's words. The Hanford Republican recently told The Fresno Bee that despite being a member of a minority party, he can get things done in Sacramento because "I...

One big difference between the two candidates running for the 21st Congressional District seat is that the incumbent has a lifelong involvement in the district and his challenger just recently returned and is pursuing a political...

MONTGOMERY WARD : It's amazing how quickly rumors circulate in this age of social media and instant messaging. On Monday, rumors were flying that the old Golden State Mall on F Street was about to be turned into a homeless center run by its new owner, Canyon Hills Assembly of God.

OIL PRICES : Oil producers have sharply curtailed drilling as the price of crude has plummeted, but it may not last for long. At least that is the opinion of oil magnate T. Boone Pickens, who predicted this week that oil prices would rebound to about $100 a barrel by the end of 2016.